Another Arnold Visits Arnie Essay
by NintendoGal55
Summary: Inspired by one writting from an anonymous person, we explore the depths of Arnold's subconscious in the episode "Arnold Visits Arnie" in this little essay. :D


An Arnold Visits Arnie Essay

After reading an essay written by an anonymous fan, which was about this particular Hey Arnold episode "Arnold Visits Arnie", it inspired me to write one of my own. So do forgive me if I make references to that particular essay. It is right here if you want to read it. Just remove the spaces. http: // www. fanfiction . net / s / 3599166 / 1 /

The episode can be interpreted in different ways, and yet we all know exactly what it represented and what it all meant. I really liked that episode, and as the other person said, it takes us into Arnold's subconscious like never before. Other than the episode "Married", but we'll get to that some other time. In this episode, we see a lot of what Arnold is thinking, and how subconsciously, he knows and feels things he doesn't know just yet, but is there.

So yes, it was very rushed and in the end descended into a nightmare-ish freak show, but that was just for comedic effect, of course. We aren't given, nor is Arnold, enough time to think about it, but it's enough to let us know what Arnold is thinking deep down below his conscious levels.

Arnold is our hero, and he seeks true love. This dream helps him to see the answers he has yet to find out consciously.

The Plot

The plot of this episode is simple. Arnold is supposed to visit his weird, antithesis cousin Arnie in the country for the weekend. His friends are all practicing baseball at Gerald Field, so he goes to tell them that he'll be gone for a few days. Simple enough, right?

Then Arnold goes to bed that night, and dreams of visiting his cousin Arnie, though we don't know it was a dream until near the end of the episode when he wakes up. In the dream, he is encountered with seeing the complete antithesis of some of his friends, as well as falling in love, being rejected, fighting off a girl he's not interested in, and then it becomes like a horror movie and he wakes up. He goes back to Gerald Field the next day, seeing his friends there just as the same as they always are, and is relieved that all is back to normal.

This episode was quite notable since it shows that deep down, Arnold is not only aware of Helga's feelings for him, but also, that he knows Lila is indeed not the girl for him, and that he does love Helga.

The Mirror and Parallel Images

When Arnold dreams of visiting Arnie, his subconscious creates a mirror of everything he knows from real life, to add to the effect of what this dream actually means. We know that Arnie is the complete antithesis of Arnold, and so the dream takes him to represent that. It is funny since Arnie actually exists and the other characters do not. But let's not quibble about that. The point is that everyone in the dream is the exact opposite of themselves, which creates the mirror.

Arnie represents what Arnold would be like if he just pretty much gave up on life. He just exists, has minimal interest in anything, and seems to think that counting things, lint, a pile of dirt, are all equally as fascinating as a date with a girl. Arnold lives, and strives to do what he can to make him happy, and has many interests, most especially when he likes a girl. They are the complete opposite of each other. Another example, Arnold's pet pig Abner is cute and clean. Arnie's Abigail is dirty and nasty.

Arnold's friends, Lila, Helga, Sid, Stinky, Gerald, Rhonda, Phoebe, and Harold all have dream alter-egos of themselves, but the complete opposite of who they are. Or in Helga's case, what she shows on a daily basis.

Lila becomes the brazen, crude, and trampy Lulu.

Phoebe becomes the yokel, dumb-as-a-doorknob, dopey Fifi.

Stinky becomes the dandy, nerdy and smart Stumpy.

Gerald becomes the neurotic, whining Gerard.

Sid becomes the cool, smooth, and reasoning Kid.

Harold becomes the neatly dressed, slim, prim and proper Harry.

Rhonda becomes the sloppy, messy, not-caring-how-she-looks slob Rhoda.

Helga becomes the sweet, creative, polite and fun Hilda.

So it's all just a big parallel universe of what everyone would be like if they were the opposite of who they are. It was done to move along in representing deep down what the two most important girls in Arnold's life really mean to him, and also, for comedic effect. (Who doesn't enjoy a fun idea where a character becomes the exact opposite of who they are? XD)

The mirror, and parallel go like this. In real life, Lila is a very nice and sweet girl, but does not like Arnold romantically. In the dream, Lulu is not at all very nice, but like likes Arnold. In real life, Lila falls for the disinterested Arnie. Just as Lulu falls for the disinterested Arnold in the dream. Arnold likes Lila in real life. In the dream, Arnold doesn't like Lila in that way.

In real life, Helga acts like she hates Arnold, but she really loves him. In the dream, Hilda is nice and sweet, but she does not like Arnold romantically. Helga loves Arnold, who is apparently not interested in her (not consciously, at least). But in the dream, Arnold falls in love with Hilda.

Once more, we have that mirror. Arnold really likes a girl, but that girl likes Arnie. Arnold doesn't like a girl, but that girl likes him. As I said, real life, Arnold likes Lila, but she loves Arnie. Helga loves Arnold, but he doesn't feel the same way.

Lulu and Lila

We already established the antithesis parallel and mirror. Now, it is also true that Lulu is NOT Lila. Lila is just used as a representation that she is not his true love. His subconscious creates her as the kind of person Arnold would never go for. His values are rock-solid and he is decent to the core, as the anonymous essay writer had said, and that is very much true. Arnold would choose true love over a casual, lusty fling any day. He believes in doing the right thing, no matter what.

So as I said, his subconscious is at work telling him that Lila is not the girl for him, and so he creates Lulu, who is brazen, crude, trampy, and just everything no guy who seeks true love could want. There is also said to be an element of revenge in there, since he may deep down feel that he is strung along by Lila. Though to be fair, it is true that he's willing to be her friend and hang around with her despite that she doesn't feel the same way he does. We all know Arnold never lets his resentment show in a matter like that since he knows it's not Lila's fault that she doesn't like him like him.

It was also brought up, that since this is his subconscious at work, that Lulu could also represent his desire for Lila. That's also a good point to bring, since it may do just that, since it would be a bit of a "Careful what you wish for" kind of thing. Because when it comes presented to him as he imagined, he recoils and is not interested, so that also, is a good point.

So the point is, Lulu is just basically the representation of how Lila is indeed not the girl for Arnold, and he knows that subconsciously. But, he doesn't know it on a conscious level just yet. (Not until the episode "Timberly Loves Arnold")

The anonymous writer of the said essay I mentioned before, also made a very good point to say that if Arnold and Lila ever did get into a relationship, it would not work out. I did bring this point up in my previous essay, as well. Arnold and Lila just aren't compatible. I don't want to repeat everything I said before or what the other person said, but the point is, they do have enough in common to understand each other, and are both similar in personality, but there is a major flaw in all of this. Lila sees the world through rose-coloured glasses, and ignores all the bad things in the world, that everything around her is "ever so perfect". She does this to hide from the bad factors of her life, to protect herself from getting hurt. Just like Helga does, only Helga uses hostility while Lila uses outgoing sweetness. This in turn, makes Lila a bit of a bland, one-dimensional character. Arnold is optimistic, and never lets anything stand in the way of his happiness, and he has no illusions that the world is perfect. He also, is a complex person, and he needs someone who shares some facets of his personality, and can compliment his differences with her own.

Lulu not only represents the girl Arnold does not want, but also, the lifestyle he doesn't want. Lulu is definitely the kind of girl who is a tease, a sweet-talking heartbreaker, and just what you'd want for a lusty casual fling. Arnold would never fall into that, her ways are not for him. So once again, his subconscious is telling him that Lila is not the girl for him. Not for these qualities, of course, but just plain in general that they're not good for each other. Arnold and Lulu would never work, which in turn would equal in real life that Arnold and Lila would not work.

Lulu is easy, she's crude, brazen, and very much a slut in the standards of a nine year old girl. She constantly harasses Arnold, in ways that he doesn't like when it comes from someone he doesn't love. She tickles him, tries to snuggle close with him, tries to kiss him, anything. He of course, is instantly repulsed by her and flat-out stands for his moral beliefs.

So in all, this is Lulu. She's the antithesis of Lila, used in a way to represent that Lila is not the girl for our hero.

Hilda and Helga

Now we move onto Hilda, who in the dream is pretty much the antithesis Helga that Arnold knows in real life. But, and this is a big but, Hilda is also everything Helga is without her bullying persona. Compared to Lulu, she is a proper lady, and is, true love. She's elusive, and not easy to win, just as love always is. You have to work to get it. And Arnold, our hero, has to work to win Helga, just as he had to in the dream, though he failed since Hilda likes Arnie.

As I said before, Arnold's subconscious is at work here once again, using Helga to represent the kind of girl Arnold would like, and to also, tell him that she is the girl for him. He knows this deep down in his subconscious, and still has yet to figure it out. Hilda is the Helga Arnold knows she is deep down, if she would just have more confidence in herself and shed her bullying attitude. This proves that he does know of how she is deep down, and that he loves that side of her. So in a way, if Helga had been like Hilda from the start (minus the part of liking Arnie), we could see the possibility that he would fall in love with her. And he did just so in the dream.

We first meet Hilda sitting outside the theatre, looking up at the moon and reciting some poetry. This indicates he knows deep down that Helga is a very talented poet and that maybe, just maybe, knows subconsciously that she is the owner of the little pink book? Who knows. Point is, he knows somehow that she's great with poetry. Anyway, so Arnold is trying to get away from Lulu after she harasses him yet again, and he goes outside to get some air. He trips over Hilda, therefore bringing in the fact he literally falls for her.

I love this moment in the episode. Arnold takes one look at her, this soft, romantic, sweeping music plays, and he gets a lovesick smile on his face and says "Hi" in a lovesick manner. Hilda bids him "Hello" politely, and takes his hand as he offers it to her to help her up. It's also at this moment that Arnold says something I think all the Helga fans were cheering for, and I too, love him for it.

"Do...I know you?"

There's a sense of familiarity in there, see? Of course! Hilda looks like Helga, sounds like Helga, and dresses like her, though somewhat differently. She is everything that Arnold knows Helga is deep down, the Helga he likes. This also, indicates that deep down in his subconscious, he recognizes Helga as someone worthy of love and affection. Mainly, HIS love and affection. We all know in real life, when Helga is nice and sheds her nasty bullying, he really likes her. Now with Hilda, who is Helga exposed as who she really is, he's gone beyond just liking her.

Hilda is true love, she is romance. Chaste, honest, direct, and is not easy to win, as I said. Love takes work and effort, and she's quite elusive.

So the dream progresses, and as Hilda comes into the picture, Arnold does all he can to spend time with her and get close to her. This is also, bringing back some past events. When he offers Hilda some of his candy during the movie, that raises the question if this is his subconscious replaying the events from the episode "Beaned" when he was preparing Helga a snack and also feeding her the chocolate pudding. Or later on during the hay ride, when he offers her a daisy, just as he did in "Beaned" as well. As well as offering her candy and giving her a flower, Arnold also tries to snuggle close to her using the old "Let me get the straw out of your hair" trick, and looks on with disappointment as she directs all of this back to Arnie. So yes, his actions and attempts are all mild and innocent, and it proves he's still a guy, who wants to get close to a girl he likes. Of course we know he's not a pervert in that sense nor is he pushy, he would back off if Hilda clearly expressed she didn't want him to do any of that.

Then comes the two confessions of love in the corn field. Arnold tells Hilda he really likes her, just putting it out there honestly and directly, plain and simple. Unfortunately, Hilda confesses that she's in love with Arnie. This plays back to when Lila rejected him, and also, knowing that she liked Arnie. Why? Because he's "likable and attractive", which both fit Arnold like a glove. She then is gone, and Arnold is distraught and sad, and then it becomes a nightmare-ish freakshow when all the kids from town, representing the antithesis of his friends, and Arnie, all come in and attack.

So as I said before, the mirror once again comes into play. In the dream, Lulu likes Arnold, but Arnold loves Hilda. In real life, Helga loves Arnold, but Arnold likes Lila. His subconscious has pretty much worked everything out and told him, while putting in a parallel image of everything, that Lila is not the girl for him, and that Helga is his true love, the perfect girl for him. He just now has to figure it all out on a conscious level, since it's all mixed up like one huge puzzle. He has to find all the pieces and put them together, putting them in the right places until he hits the last piece, and solves the puzzle.

Once again, we see here, through the mirror and parallel imaging, that Arnold is aware deep down of Helga's feelings for him.

The dream represents, as I said before, that Helga is the perfect girl for Arnold.

The Aftermath

All right, so now we're at the end of the dream, Arnold has woken up, and is quite disoriented, wondering what day it is. He sees now that it was all a dream. It's given him a lot to think about.

Arnold then goes to Gerald Field, still in his PJ's, and just like the other day, everyone is there practicing baseball. Everyone is back to normal, or well, they've always been normal, but after the dream, he's just happy to see everyone as they are again. Rhonda is still fashion obsessed and neat, Harold is a fat slob who couldn't care less of his appearance, Phoebe is a very smart and dandy nerd, Stinky is a dumb bunny, Lila is demure and sweet, Gerald is cool and smooth and reasoning, Sid is neurotic and whiny, and Helga is...well, Helga.

This where it gets cute. Upon seeing Helga, and seeing her act like she always does, Arnold is happy to see her and gives her a hug. If you asked him why, I have to agree with the anonymous essay writer and say that he just couldn't have explained why he did that. I also agree that maybe deep down, his subconscious was giving him a push toward Helga, that she is the perfect girl for him. For a moment she lets him hug her and melts in his arms, and then pushes him away. I only wonder how he doesn't hear her lovesick sigh...

Arnold: Wow, Helga, it really is you!

Then he hugs her, she lets him for a moment, melts, and then pushes him away.

Helga: Doi, of course it's me, football head!

Lila: Whomever did you think she was?

Arnold then backs away from Lila, his hands up in defense, terrified of another Lulu attack. This also, is an indication of his subconscious telling him that Lila is not the girl for him. He then asks her about her feelings, just to confirm that she's the same Lila and NOT Lulu.

Arnold: Lila, do you like me like me or do you just like me?

Lila: Well I'm ever so certain that I just like you.

Arnold: Right. I mean, that's good to hear.

So while it was rushed, and didn't leave us or Arnold with enough time to think about it, at least now we know. We know that deep down, Arnold knows what he is supposed to know, all of the things that will soon come into play and lead him to the right choice. It all comes down to the fact Helga is the perfect girl for him, and that Lila is better off as just his friend, and he knows this deep down, he just has to figure it out.


End file.
